


Writing A Love Song Is Worse When You're Tone Deaf

by yatagarasu (leelhiette)



Series: Some Glucose With A Dash Of Cholesterol [1]
Category: Gintama
Genre: Attempt at Humor, Canon Compliant, Drama, Follows Anime Timeline, Gintoki-Centric, Lots of it, M/M, Pining, Pre-shogun assassination arc
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-03
Updated: 2020-05-03
Packaged: 2021-03-01 19:26:50
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 14,924
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23982289
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/leelhiette/pseuds/yatagarasu
Summary: In which Gintoki should really listen to his horoscopes because the damn things always seemed to know better than him. (Or everyone should really stop meddling.)
Relationships: Hijikata Toshirou/Sakata Gintoki, Kagura & Sakata Gintoki & Shimura Shinpachi, Okita Sougo & Sakata Gintoki
Series: Some Glucose With A Dash Of Cholesterol [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1735858
Comments: 24
Kudos: 248





	Writing A Love Song Is Worse When You're Tone Deaf

**Author's Note:**

> So, this work is for a friend. Hope you enjoy. This is more drama than romance, though.

Almost a year ago, it all started when one of his arguments with Hijikata Toshirou had resulted into the Yorozuya being kicked out of the shop where they'd been hired for the day. Obviously, the kids were pissed at him. It was unfair that the stupid bastard was saved from the same treatment since the man had paid for the damages incurred. Though, he would admit to being at fault this time ( _only this once_ ) because it had been Gintoki, as always, who'd started the fight. Though, the other always stood his ground and gave as good as he got.

Hijikata hadn't even been _in_ the shop. The man was just passing by when Gintoki was out and wiping one of the shop's windows. Though, his eyes met the other's blue ones briefly through the reflection of said window and the bastard promptly avoided his gaze and ignored him.

There was always something about being dismissed by that nicotine-addict that always served to get on his nerves.

So, the insults came hurtling out of his mouth before he knew it. Shinpachi had even cringed from the way Hijikata's demonic visage had slowly turned to Gintoki the more he goaded him. Initially, Kagura had even put in her two cents about tax-stealing bakufu lapdogs before he and Hijikata had a screaming match that eventually came to blows. Then she was kicking them apart in her irritation. Admittedly, it hadn't been wise to use the shop manager as a means to try and knock out the bastard.

Once they got back to his apartment and Yorozuya's makeshift office, Shinpachi had been full of righteous fury and hadn't stopped glaring at him while Kagura had already gotten over it. Especially since she could be lazier than he was on some days and was already trying to catch up on her drama reruns.

"Honestly, Gin-san," Shinpachi eventually groaned when he realized that none of his coworkers were feeling remorseful about a lost job. "Why are you doing this? No, really, _why_ are you always doing this?" He rubbed his temples in obvious agitation.

"Oi, oi, why does this always have to be on Gin-san?" He complained irritably as he turned the page of his Jump.

"Because it's your fault, obviously," Kagura answered dryly, disinterest written on her face and focused on her drama. "Sometimes, you're as bad as that sadist, Gin-chan. What did mother always tell you? You should stop being friendly with that brat, he's a bad influence on you." She snorted and almost ended up inhaling the strip of sukonbu she was munching on.

"Oi, I said don't put this on me!" Gintoki finally glanced up from his reading to glare at them.

Shinpachi returned his glare while his glasses glinted rather maliciously, oozing disapproval.

"I'd stop if you can also control your childish antics!" He promptly exploded as he pointed an accusing finger towards him. "What is it with you and always starting a fight with Hijikata-san? He didn't even do anything this time! And don't lie to me, I was there!" He growled when Gintoki opened his mouth to protest.

"Isn't it obvious, Shinpachi?" Kagura cut in before Gintoki had a chance to defend himself, giving them looks as if they were idiots. "It's like a typical shoujo manga cliché about a bully wanting to get the attention of his crush. Since Gin-chan is emotionally-stunted, the only way he knows how to get it is by riling him up. He's been showing these signs every time he sees the stupid mayora." She explained rather matter-of-factly to said silver haired man's mortification.

" _Kagura_!" He shrieked as he chucked the thick volume of his Jump on her head which she dodged easily. "The only obvious thing here is that empty space in your head–!"

"Now that I think about it," Those hazel eyes behind the other male's signature glasses gleamed with unholy glee. "Gin-san only ever went out of his way like this for Hijikata-san. Sure, he's been crushing on Ketsuno Ana for as long as we've known him but he only actually did something when it came to him." He added thoughtfully and returned the smirk gracing the Yato's face.

"This is injustice! Bleach isn't enough to cleanse my brain and my ears from this, you know!" Gintoki screamed angrily as he combed a hand through his curls in agitation.

Because _what the hell?_ What the fucking hell? Did these kids hear themselves? Him and that stupid tax-thief? No freaking way! Nuh-uh. Gin-san had already reserved himself for the weather girl that always served to make his day a little brighter. Sure, sometimes, _sometimes_ , they got along on _some_ things. Their groups had helped each other out countless of times. But that was it and nothing more.

So, once again, what the hell!

"They do have a lot of things in common," Shinpachi mused aloud as if in realization, sharing a meaningful glance with Kagura.

_Oi, you're the straight man in all this. There's nothing straight about what you're saying!_

"Yeah, a lot of girls are throwing themselves at Gin-chan but he never expressed any interest like _that_ ," The girl nodded to herself as if everything suddenly made sense which, for the record, _they didn't!_

"And they'd been through a lot together,"

"What do you mean _a lot_? I don't want to waste my time with that–"

"They also both have horrible taste in food,"

"Oi, you take _that_ back, you gluttonous brat!"

"Oh! I got one! Remember when that sadist told us that he'd handcuffed them together? That stupid brat said that they got along well. What do you think he meant by that? Did he mean that they did XXX and played the XXX?" Kagura asked innocently.

"Kagura-chan!" Their resident glasses looked appalled at her suggestions, as he should be.

Gintoki surged to his feet and glared daggers at her.

"What the hell is Souichiro-kun teaching you? For that matter, when the hell did he even have the time to tell you about that?!" He exploded as he rudely pointed at her direction.

"So, it's true?" Kagura was obviously mocking him.

"Back at that restaurant three months ago," Shinpachi answered before things could further derail and levelled him with another disapproving look as if Gintoki _had_ been doing unspeakable things. "You were so busy with Hijikata-san at that time when Okita-san told us about it. We thought he was joking so he showed us a photo." He deadpanned.

Their boss then did the most logical thing to do in this situation.

He bashed his head against his desk a total of five times until he felt his brow split open and blood began to drip down his cheeks.

"Maybe if they got together, they can finally stop their incessant fighting," Shinpachi put in thoughtfully.

"Don't worry, Gin-chan," He felt Kagura's petite hand patting his shoulder. "We'll help you. That stupid mayora wouldn't know what hit him," She continued in a rather ominous voice that spelled future disaster so he completely missed the mirthful looks exchanged by the other two, trying to suppress their laughter.

_No! What I need is for you brats to shut up! Stop! Stop, I beg you! You're the ones defiling Gin-san's virtue!_

Gintoki screamed.

**oOo**

The next time he met Hijikata, the man was patrolling once again and was with Yamazaki this time.

Flicking on his mayo lighter, Hijikata lit up his cigarette, inhaling deeply before puffing out smoke. Gintoki and Shinpachi were on their way to get some groceries. Still, what the kids insinuated stayed with him so when his red eyes met the bastard's blue ones, he felt his gaze skittering away almost in a panic. An insult was at the tip of his tongue. He felt the urge to unleash it strengthen but when the other men merely walked past him without incident, Gintoki bit his lip to keep his mouth shut and missed Shinpachi's small sigh of relief.

So, what if the mayonnaise-obsessed idiot ignored him? _So what?_ He didn't give a damn. He wouldn't give in to the urge just to prove Kagura's crazy conspiracy correct.

His eyebrow twitched in annoyance, though. Sometimes, Hijikata had a way of pissing him off just by existing. The same way when Gintoki caught sight of Zura or Sakamoto heading his way. It wasn't like the man did it on purpose too like those two did who seemed to exist for the sole reason of bothering him. Even back in his teens, Takasugi hadn't managed such a feat and it had always been him who pissed the midget off, not the other way around.

The difference was that he'd known those three through the rotten bonds they had. They knew their way around getting under Gintoki's skin without even trying. Hijikata, though, was part of the new name he'd made for himself. And still, the man could get under his skin without even realizing it and that wasn't even mentioning the fact that it also rang true from Gintoki's end.

Worse, the Yorozuya leader felt even more aggravated when the dark-haired man was given the chance to just overlook his existence as if Gintoki was truly not worth his time–

" ** _Ahh_**!" He stopped in the middle of the road and pulled on his curls. That kind of thinking was what exactly Kagura had just told him the other day! "No, no, no, this isn't happening!" He denied loudly and garnered strange glances from other people.

"Gin-san, what are you doing?" Shinpachi hissed as the teen pulled him along.

"I'm having a crisis about my purpose in life, can't you tell?" He laughed a little hysterically.

In hindsight, this was probably the catalyst of what would be one of the greatest things in his life.

**oOo**

If Gintoki had been actively avoiding running into anyone in black uniform for that week, he would like to make it clear that he wasn't running away. He _wasn't_. Ketsuno Ana had reported in the news one morning that the color black was a sign for Libras. A sign of _what?_ Gintoki had no clue and had no plan in finding out.

Still, he knew that he was bound to run into one of them eventually.

This one in particular was lounging by the bench at the usual dango stand, munching on a stick of dango. Since he wanted to make it clear again that he wasn't running away, Gintoki took a seat on the same bench and ordered his usual: a plate of fresh dango and hot cup of matcha. Despite the black uniform, this was actually one of those dogs that he didn't usually mind. In fact, this was the exact person he needed to reaffirm his total non-feelings for Hijikata Toshirou.

"Yo, Souichirou-kun, slacking off again?" He asked nonchalantly, thanking the old man when his order was served.

"That's usually you, danna." The brat responded bluntly. "Don't lump me in with a lazy ass like you, please. And it's Sougo," His tone remained bland despite his rather offensive words and Gintoki knew him by now not to take the bait.

He took a bite of his dango.

While he normally mocked the Shinsengumi about slacking off during their breaks, it was actually usually a source of relief to see them. It meant a time of temporary peace. There were no raids, no insidious plots, mutiny, cursed superiors, or anything that usually threatened his friends or generally the people of Edo. Normally, if Zura hadn't informed him by then, his usual signal about anything amiss was the working state of this particular police force.

"That hurts, you know," He finally replied, his voice implying anything but.

"It should," Okita agreed rather easily.

No mercy, this one.

"So is your Vice-Commander still alive or did one of your schemes finally succeed?" Gintoki tested out the waters, very careful not to give away any of his real intentions out of this conversation because this was also the last person that he'd wanted to have any ammunition towards him.

Something must've been strange in his tone nonetheless because the blonde finally turned to face him properly. _Ugh, what now?_

"Did you want me to succeed?" The other tilted his head.

Was this a trick question? He didn't know. Gintoki felt a twinge of discomfort at the way Okita seemed to be intently studying him. Maybe he should've listened to his horoscope. He shouldn't have tempted fate.

"I'll pay for his funeral," He found himself answering without really answering the question. "Though, I only got 300 yen on me," He droned on almost listlessly.

"Still, for a jobless guy like you, that is awfully _generous_ of you, danna," Okita pointed out innocently if this bastard was actually capable of being innocent.

"Oi, that's the second time you'd made fun of Gin-san!" Again, he was deflecting.

Seriously, why couldn't this kid just enumerate all the ways he'd tried to eviscerate the mayonnaise freak's existence like he used to do? Or made his life a living hell. Usually, on the chance that Gintoki had tried to ask, he'd either be putting in suggestions or letting the casual attempts of murder or prank to get in one ear and out the other. The stories were mostly hilarious and it gave him better material to throw in Hijikata's face when they'd get into one of their petty arguments.

 _Why couldn't we just plot together again and finally confirm Gin-san's nonexistent romance for your Vice-Commander?_ Not that there was any to begin with. _There wasn't._ He just wanted to go back to normal and, for the hundredth time, why would those kids even bring it up? Did they even know how much they had messed with Gintoki's head?

"Sure, danna," Okita acquiesced too readily. "I'll be sure to send you the bill when that bastard finally drops dead," There was a gleam in his eyes that Gintoki couldn't place.

For some reason, he knew that he'd seen it before but couldn't remember when. If he did, then he would've thought twice about bringing up Hijikata into the conversation again. As it was, for the time being, he remained ignorant of the hole he'd dug himself into.

"Too bad he's not gonna drop dead anytime soon, huh?" He found himself musing because he recognized the kind of fire that Hijikata was forged from and the man just happened to be the kind of idiot who was too stubborn to die. "So, does that mean you haven't tried anything recently?" He chuckled because that was rhetorical considering who he was speaking to and _come on, give Gin-san what he wants, you little brat_ –

"Heh," The blonde had the nerve to smirk _at him_ as he stood up. "You're too transparent, danna. And my break's over. So, I gotta get back to work," He then walked off without any real warning, leaving a dumbfounded Gintoki behind.

 _As if you do, you slacker! Gin-san knows your type. But what did he mean by that? What is that bastard trying to say?_ These were the frantic questions running rampant in his head right now.

Though, it was all forgotten when the old man told him that the brat left him with a bill as well.

**oOo**

He met Hijikata again when Gintoki went to his favorite cafe to get his parfait fix.

To be perfectly honest, he would've walked out right there and then if he hadn't met the man's blue stare for just a brief second. If he did right now then it would look like he was running away. Which he _wasn't_. Ugh, it irked him. Especially when he realized that the place was full and the only vacant seat was right across the man he didn't want to be seen with right now. Gintoki still wasn't one who really put stock on people's opinions, though, so he marched towards the man's table with something akin to dread.

All he had to do was not get into a fight with the asshole.

"What do you think you're doing?" Hijikata flatly demanded, eyes narrowing as Gintoki sprawled himself across the booth he was occupying.

"In case you haven't noticed, this is the only space left for Gin-san," He pointed out, voice automatically dipping low in mockery before he was even aware of it. _Wait, no, no, no_ – "I mean, can Gin-san seat here so he can have his parfait?" He changed tunes immediately, he couldn't give up, damn it!

The vice-commander looked ready to explode for a second before he deflated into confused silence.

Hijikata blinked and any expression from his face drained away to suspicion.

"No, you can't," The man instantly refused, no mercy whatsoever. "Go eat your parfait on the floor for all I care, perm-headed idiot," He delivered calmly as he took a sip of his mayonnaise-infested coffee.

_That was totally uncalled for! What did Gin-san's hair ever do to you? Curse your straight silky hair and V-bangs!_

The muscle in Gintoki's jaw twitched, aching to unleash a torrent of verbal abuse. Still, he gritted his teeth and reminded himself that he would _not_ let himself fall for that.

"I promise I'll be one with the furniture," He tried to make his voice as lighthearted as he could which was very hard in the face of that bastard's judgmental eyes. "You won't even notice that I'm here, Oogushi-kun," He grinned widely as he dared because if he spoke any further, he was afraid that he wouldn't be able to stop himself from retaliating with everything he had against this selfish moron.

"Who're you calling Oogushi?" Hijikata snapped before he took a deep breath, obviously trying to calm down and still eyeing him with suspicion before he went back to his disgusting concoction that he called a drink. "Whatever," He finally relented as if he was too tired of dealing with Gintoki's bullshit.

That was his line, asshole. It irritated the hell out of him. Though, he could see the man's point. Last time they'd fought, they had caused damages. _Meh_.

With that, they descended into stilted silence. Gintoki had flagged down one of the waitresses and ordered two parfaits. One strawberry and one chocolate. He and the brats had just finished a job yesterday, fixing someone's wall, and he'd been craving for parfaits. Not even Hijikata could get in the way of that. When he brought his gaze back to said man, he found him staring down pensively at his empty cup.

His brows weren't slanted down to its usual scowl or frown and the non-expression finally clued him in that there was more to the bastard just getting tired of dealing with him.

"Are you looking for a time machine?" Gintoki put in jokingly, though without the goading.

He watched in amusement as the man jolted, as if the other had honestly forgotten that he wasn't alone. Hijikata glared at him briefly before scoffing as he crossed his arms over his chest. It was obvious that he hadn't appreciated being caught off guard. It was the idiot's fault for letting it down in the first place. Nonetheless, this sharp visage suited him more than the subdued face he was sporting a while ago. Not that he cared.

"As if such a thing exists," The vice-commander finally responded. "Besides, if there really was something like that, don't you think that it'd be more than just an empty cup? Like a clock or a camera?" He continued dryly with a raised eyebrow and it was a clear jab at Gintoki's intelligence.

"Oi, don't underestimate the power of time! For all we know, a time machine could be inside the drawer of my desk!" He protested in irritation.

"What the hell are you talking about? Are you telling me that you're Doraemon's friend?"

"You look more like a Nobita, though,"

"As if I'm such a pushover," Hijikata clicked his tongue in annoyance.

They both quietened once again when the waitress arrived with Gintoki's parfaits. With that, he finally busied himself with eating his desserts. He couldn't help the little hum of delight as he took his first spoonful of cold, sugary sweetness. He'd been getting low sugars for the past week. See, he could hold a somewhat civil conversation with Hijikata. There had been no shoujo atmosphere whatsoever. Though, he'd also admit that it felt a little off to bicker with the man without yelling or any violence.

"Besides," The dark-haired man continued, unprompted. "How will we learn from our mistakes if we can just wipe the slate clean and start over again?"

Gintoki paused and stared.

Usually, when he and this bastard got into somber topics for conversation, they were usually in the middle of something that spelled life or death. This was too quiet for them to be having it. Either it was Gintoki shouting about things that should've been obvious or Hijikata trying to beat it into his head. He swallowed heavily before mulling over the words and really gave it some serious thought.

He had a lot of regrets in the past. Some things that he wished he'd done differently. But, right now, what kept him going was that he wouldn't be with the people he was with now if he hadn't taken that path. His resolve wouldn't be as hardened if he'd removed one of the things that made him who he was today. He'd meant what he said to Bansai before. What he protected hadn't changed since then. At least in that knowledge, he could rest easy.

"That's a lot of thought there, Hijikata-kun," Like hell he was openly agreeing with this bastard. "Though, if I could go back and make sure that I didn't lose half of my money to pachinko last week, that would be nice, no?" He stated nonchalantly as he took another spoonful of his parfait.

"You and your good-for-nothing ways," Hijikata shook his head as if telling himself that he should've known better and did that one thing Gintoki would never expect to be directed at him.

The stupid mayora _smiled_ at him. To be fair, it was a barely-there quirk of his lips. But it was still a fucking smile, goddamn it.

"Anyway, I've gotta go," Hijikata stood up from his seat and threw some bills on the table as he walked away, though, he paused and gazed at Gintoki over his shoulder with clear blue eyes. "Stay out of trouble, Yorozuya." With that he gave an almost absentminded wave of his hand before he exited the establishment, leaving behind a stupefied silver-haired man.

He didn't know what surprised him more. That he'd seen Hijikata make such an expression or that he was capable of making it in Gintoki's presence.

Still, he was even more bewildered when he realized the other had left enough money to pay for his parfaits too.

**oOo**

After that, Gintoki finally ended his quest of actively avoiding Hijikata.

_Libras should be out and about! Chance encounters await you especially if you're someone with a natural perm and a losing streak in pachinko–_

Since their last encounter, it had become clear that he _could_ stand the other's presence without having to bite each other's head off. It had been almost casual if such a thing could be associated to the Shinsengumi Vice-Commander. Stick in the mud as he was. Still, just as he was on his way to pachinko one afternoon, he crossed paths again with the dark-haired man sooner than he thought. It had only been two days.

Though, instead of walking leisurely for his patrol, the bastard was carrying a large sack on his back and some bags on his hands. On his side, a small old woman trotted, bent on her back as she kept up with the man's slow strides.

Gintoki was tempted to make a remark for all the bastard had mocked him about his job.

Still, there was still something to be said when the proud vice-commander had evidently broken off from his routine and went out to help some granny. Hell, the man could've just thrown Yamazaki into it since that guy needed to be acknowledged once in a while. Granted, he'd always known that Hijikata was a good man, had seen it countless of times. But those were mostly the man's sentiments as a samurai.

"Yo, Oogushi-kun, what are you up to?" He greeted once he was close enough.

"Who the hell is Oogushi?" Hijikata demanded irritably. "I'm just helping Miura-san to an inn she can stay at. Her daughter was supposed to meet her up at the station but there was a last-minute delay. What about you? Off to gamble or eat out again, natural perm?" While his words were provoking, his tone was calmer than the silver-haired man anticipated.

"I'll have you know that I earned this money," He sniffed in offense. "And I'm just going to try and make double of it in the pachinko." This conversation was safe, they didn't have to fight it out like they always did.

His eyebrows climbed to his hairline when Hijikata merely rolled his eyes at him.

"Is he a friend of yours, Vice-Commander-san?" Granny cut in from beside the officer, staring at Gintoki curiously.

 _Oi, baba, what the hell are you getting at?_ He thought mulishly.

"Ah, no, he's a stain to society so we've crossed paths more than I like," Hijikata answered matter-of-factly.

"Oi–!" Gintoki tried to disagree.

"Ah, I see," The old woman didn't even have the decency to sound skeptical for his sake.

Hijikata walked past him as Miura caught up to his rather abrupt departure. The silver-haired man was about to yell and start a fight, consequences be damned. He wasn't about to let the guy just humiliate him in front of anyone. It pissed him off. It wasn't like Kagura or Shinpachi were around to witness him have a moment with the mayo-addict. _Not that they had those in the beginning_. Even then, this bastard was asking for it–

"But if you wanted a job done, I guess he can be reliable," Hijikata suddenly remarked, his back turned so Gintoki couldn't really read his expression.

"Ah, I see," Miura simply repeated.

_Is that all you can say? Oiii!_

As he watched them disappear through the crowd, Gintoki was left standing there. That was almost civil of them. _Again_. He shook his head in wonder before trudging back towards his original destination. In fact, he already saw a familiar someone.

"Oi, madao!"

**oOo**

Still, the kids knew something was up with him.

"For Libras, please remember that honesty is the best policy–" Ketsuno Ana's voice chirped in the background as he hummed, cooking breakfast that late morning since he'd remembered to actually get some late-night groceries yesterday. It wasn't like he'd woken up early though. Shinpachi was going to be late today so he'd taken over the cooking duties. Since he hadn't gone drinking, he wasn't nursing any hangovers either. And he remembered not to spend all his money in pachinko since his sign was said to have bad luck that day.

"You seem to be in a good mood, Gin-chan," Kagura observed as she peeked in the kitchen, eyeing him strangely.

"I remembered to buy food and strawberry milk last night. I didn't have an early appointment with toilet-san from drinking. I hear Ketsuno Ana's voice in the news–" He enumerated all the things that really set the mood of his day.

At least, until Shinpachi finally arrived.

"And he went out to eat with Hijikata-san the other day." The boy put in as he glanced at him from behind Kagura, his gaze probing. "Don't even try to lie. Aneue saw you guys at the café," He was quick to add as if he'd read the annoyance in Gintoki's face.

 _Ugh_. Of all the people to see them together, it just had to be Otae.

"Listen," He sighed as he saw Kagura's eyes gleaming smugly and felt a migraine currently stewing inside his head. "It's not what you guys think, okay? There's nothing happening. I don't know why you guys insist that I like that mayora because I _don't_. I'm not fighting him anymore, see? Now stop making things weird and stop it. _I mean it_." He tried to glare at them both, especially when Kagura started snickering into her hand while Shinpachi gave him this patronizing look.

"Do you hear him? He's so defensive!" Kagura whispered mockingly. "He's like a high school boy trying to hide his first relationship from his parents. Is that it? Is our Gin-chan a cherry boy all along?"

Gintoki slammed his hand on the sink.

"Oi, who are you calling a cherry boy?" He demanded. "You're fifty years too early to be using that term loosely! You don't even go to high school!" He tried to make a swipe for her head but she just ducked and he ended up slapping Shinpachi.

"Why are you aiming at me?!"

"Then stop standing there, megane!"

"You two are dead! _Dead_!"

Crisis averted. Thank God.

**oOo**

It took crossing paths with Hijikata for the seventh time in two weeks before Gintoki finally realized what was happening. Ever since he'd refrained from purposely antagonizing the vice-commander, there had been no reason for the other man to retaliate. They still bickered sometimes over little things but it was, dare he say it, almost good-natured. And they only fought twice out of seven times they'd encountered each other which earned him another round of relentless teasing from Kagura.

And three times out of seven, they actually held decent conversations. One when they'd met each other at a bar for a drink of sake, the other one when they'd watched the havoc caused by one of Kagura and Okita's many dangerous spats, and last was at the dango stand during the man's break.

"Why are we here having lunch with them?!" Hijikata finally exploded that afternoon, standing by the table and still not taking a seat. Okita was with him while Gintoki stood beside them with the kids.

"It's the only available table?" Gintoki quipped back almost nonchalantly as he rubbed the back of his neck.

The man didn't seem to have any excuse to reject their presence so Kagura and Shinpachi readily took their seats. Gintoki shrugged and sat down beside Kagura. He didn't actually mind but it seemed that Hijikata was in one of those moods again where he seemed like he's always angry at the world. Maybe he could poke fun at him once they had all eaten. Still, when Hijikata finally huffed and moved to sit beside Shinpachi, Kagura suddenly stood up.

"Oi, where do you think you're going, stupid mayora?" She demanded as she stretched on top of the table to get a hold of Hijikata's sleeve.

"What are you doing?" The man demanded as he tried to shake off the girl's grip.

Gintoki had a bad feeling about this.

"Uhm, Kagura-chan," He called out nervously, never one to ignore his gut feeling.

"Sit down beside Gin-chan, yes?" The girl demanded bluntly.

Hijikata scowled darkly. _Uh-oh_. Whatever brought Hijikata to a foul mood, it was _bad_. He could tell. Because these past two weeks that he'd encountered the man, Gintoki knew that it was the most passive he'd seen of him. Unlike today. He sent his own glare towards Kagura because whatever she's planning, it couldn't be anything good. Especially after that conspiracy theory that she'd cooked up three weeks ago.

_Don't make a scene here, you brat!_

Before the vice-commander could let out a piece of his mind, Okita took that opportunity to take the seat beside Shinpachi, lounging as he did so

"Oops, this is occupied, Hijikata-san," The blonde deadpanned before turning to the sole female of the group. "And China, stop lying on the table. The food might get infected with your germs," He remarked almost casually.

"I'm gonna beat you so bad after we eat that you're gonna be vomiting all the food back out of your scrawny body," The girl threatened with a dark look as she settled back on her seat.

"That's gross, Kagura-chan," Shinpachi grimaced from beside the sadistic brat.

In the commotion, Gintoki almost missed it when Hijikata finally sat down beside him. To be honest, it was a so-so fit. They might be knocking elbows later when they eat. Ugh, how was this his afternoon again? Right, because Shinpachi just had to open his mouth and invite them to the restaurant as well. They really were trying his patience. For one, he didn't have a crush. Two, he'd already proven that he could get along with Hijikata and he didn't always provoke the man. And–

Fine. _Fine_. So, he also discovered that Hijikata wasn't actually a bad company. The man was capable of being nice to him. Of his own free will without dire circumstances dictating his actions. It was actually nice. So, Okita was right. They really got along well. _That was it and nothing more._

As soon as they'd placed their orders, Kagura turned to Hijikata with a squint to her eyes.

"So, Toshi," She called on the man rather imperiously and Gintoki was close enough to feel the full body twitch of the man beside him at the disrespectful tone. "How far have you and Gin-chan gone–" He cut her off by slapping a hand to her big mouth.

"Kagura-chan!" Shinpachi, the voice of reason, thankfully interrupted as well. "That's too soon to be asking and it's none of our business!" Or not.

 _Oi, you're not helping!_ Gintoki glared at the boy and if looks could kill, all would be left was the glasses he was known for. Kagura grumbled as she glared at Shinpachi as well, voice muffled by Gintoki's hand which tightened around her cheeks. Almost nervously, his gaze shifted to the resident sadist beside the glasses and saw him watching the spectacle with intrigue, obviously taking it all in as he smelled some grade-A blackmail material.

"What the hell are your kids talking about?" Hijikata grumbled beside him, eyeing them with suspicion. Which he totally didn't need. He didn't want this asshole getting wind of their conspiracies.

"She's talking about the food!" He insisted loudly while glowering at the brats with wild eyes to keep their mouths shut. For their sake. "How far have we gone to eat? This poor girl has been living off of just rice for the past week. Of course, she's just mad that she had to go far to this restaurant after we got our paycheck." Gintoki weaved his bullshit like it was second nature.

The suspicion didn't abate in the slightest. _Damn it_.

Before he could spin another tale, Kagura bit his hand.

"Ow! That's not food you stupid girl!" He screamed as he cradled his hand to his chest, grimacing at the ring of teeth marks.

"You're that hungry, China?" Help came from the last person that Gintoki expected, not that he was complaining. "Maybe we'll have to arrest you for plaguing Edo with your cannibalistic tendencies." Okita stared at Kagura as if she was a rabid animal needed to be put down.

Obviously, Kagura and Okita started arguing again while Shinpachi helplessly tried to play the role of mediator.

It took a few minutes before the man beside him stood up and headed for the entrance of the restaurant. Eyeing the departing Hijikata and the arguing kids, Gintoki decided to choose the lesser of the two evils and followed after him. By the time he got outside, he saw the vice-commander flicking his lighter on to light his cigarette. It was kind of expected given the atmosphere they just left a while ago and the agitated vibes the man had been exuding.

"Yo, Hijikata-kun," He greeted as he stood a few ways beside the other. "Trouble in paradise?" He wiggled his brows in what he hoped didn't come off as mocking.

"Shut it, perm head." Hijikata grunted, taking a long drag of smoke which basically translated to _I'm not in the mood for your bullshit_.

Before, he would've ignored such a blatant atmosphere and proceed to steamroll over Hijikata anyway. Even now, the man still irritated him at some point and it could still go worse sometimes depending on the insults thrown. He could still rile up the bastard if he put his mind to it. However, these past few weeks made him appreciate the tentative respite from their usual insults and fights and it also made him see the man from another angle.

Hijikata was still a bastard though and Gintoki had no shame in letting the man know this.

"Look," The dark-haired man frowned. "I heard from Kondo-san that we're getting a new recruit. There's just a lot of bureaucracy involved. That's all," He finally relented as he put the stub out of his cigarette on a nearby bin.

"Sounds like a lot of headache," He offered, knowing how little help it was.

"Tell me about it," Hijikata groaned in frustration.

When they eventually came back into the restaurant, it was to the knowledge that Kagura had eaten their meals, Okita had foot the bill under Hijikata's name, and Shinpachi had lost his glasses when he'd tried to get between the other two's spat once it came to physical blows. In the end, Gintoki didn't even stop Hijikata when he'd manhandled Kagura and Okita to apologize to the manager on their knees for the damages they caused.

His horoscope did say that he'd see something interesting today. And, well, it might be right.

**oOo**

It turned out that the new recruit was the half-brother of the Commander of another police force. They seemed to be the _yang_ to the Shinsengumi's _yin_ colors. Although what they symbolized were in reverse. Still, he'd had enough of Sasaki Isaburo and his constant nagging in text messages. Though, he'd admit that Hijikata had the right to be agitated that week ago. Their new recruit had some baggage on him when he was delivered to their doors.

He almost got arrested, thanks to the stunt he pulled back at the rooftop. He'd pleaded his case. Besides, the chubby recruit with that ridiculous baby face owed him. So, it ended up fine. And he saw another surface that made the complexities of someone he knew. Either from the thorny depths of hell, the demon that had been unleashed in that fight against Sasaki, or the cunning edge that deserved the title of Vice-Commander.

 _Our lucky sign for today is Libra,_ Ketsuno Ana had happily announced that morning before he and his scooter got ran over by the elite police. _You got some long days ahead of you but that's okay! The end result is going to be worth it._

Back at that rooftop, he hadn't known why but he'd felt free as he'd openly challenged Hijikata Toshirou.

"Let's see if you can take down the Joui patriot known as Shiroyasha." He remembered cockily saying and wondered how this would affect their newfound truce.

Then again, he remembered feeling surprised when the man had simply laughed. It was not the laughing sound of someone in disbelief or someone who was on the verge of losing it. And Gintoki didn't know what to think when he recognized that Hijikata sounded _relieved_ of all things. The man had always found him suspicious, sometimes going along and arresting him even for the most ridiculous things.

He was also astonished to learn that he didn't want Hijikata to hate him. Now that it was all out in the open, there was no room left for anything but the truth. He also didn't know what to expect from the bastard because he kept surprising him–

Instead, he'd met Gintoki's gaze steadily with his own. Unfaltering. And that–

"We brats have to stick together." The bastard had said with that same smile back at the café, a barely-there quirk of his lips.

A beat. Then two.

Right there and then, Gintoki _finally_ realized that he was screwed.

**oOo**

"Okay, so you were right," Gintoki announced at dinner the next evening following his sudden epiphany.

Kagura and Shinpachi gave him odd looks. They'd kicked up a fuss once they'd been made aware that he hadn't brought them with him during the mess with the Mimawarigumi. He still stood by that decision considering he was actually infiltrating a Jouishishi gang. That was the kind of mess that he didn't want the kids getting involved in and that was not saying how Otae would kill him if he ever considered it.

"Right about what?" Shinpachi's brow suddenly furrowed in annoyance. "Don't tell me you really forgot to take out the trash," Disapproval, thy name is Shimura Shinpachi.

Though, the other wasn't wrong. The piles of trash had been taking residence in his kitchen for a week. Since Kagura and Shinpachi had been helping Otae with some errand, the glasses had taken to nagging at him about the chores that had been left to Gintoki. He was even on the way to throw them out, he swore, but he forgot about it when he remembered that there was a sale that morning for cartons of his strawberry milk that morning by that newly opened supermarket at the other side of town.

"Hey! I was out on a job, remember?" He complained, choosing not to mention the sale since he didn't get to buy them anyway. "And I almost got arrested!" He reminded them.

"Because you didn't bring us with you," Kagura petulantly pointed out, obviously still sore about it.

"And you forgot about it this morning as well!" The glasses yelled his priorities. "I came by this morning with this place stinking like someone died in here, you lazy perm! It took _three hours_ to air it out!" Shinpachi looked three seconds away from smacking the shit out of Gintoki.

"That baby face recruit came by for help to deliver a letter," He groaned out, tired of having this conversation for the third time that day. "I didn't expect that the cemetery would be so out of the way so cut Gin-san some slack here!"

That seemed to give Shinpachi pause.

"What did you guys exactly do in the cemetery anyway?" The kid asked with a worried frown.

Now, that made him hesitate from immediately answering. After the whole ordeal of helping that stupid Check It Out gang in capturing that baby face bastard, Gintoki figured that he owed him as well. So, he'd grumbled all the way while he drove them to their destination using his scooter. Still, there was something unnerving about stepping within the threshold that was Hijikata's past. He'd learned a few things when that thug had read the vice-commander's letter for all to hear but it was different to outright intrude the way he'd had earlier.

He kept a few things close to his chest that hadn't seen light of the day and he completely understood sentiments like moving on and moving forward. There was then and there was now. He knew fully well that _now_ was what should matter.

"I just told you, I helped the guy deliver a letter, that's all," He repeated.

Shinpachi must've sensed that it was a question he wasn't comfortable answering honestly when he didn't push the topic. Which he was grateful for because it was not his words to tell.

"So, what were we right about?" Kagura eventually went back to their original discussion.

 _Ugh._ Right, he was about to tell them. Now that they'd initially gotten sidetracked, he was nervous once again and realized that he'd used up all the courage he'd stored up for that moment. For a second, he toyed with the idea of bullshitting his way out of this one. But ignoring the problem wouldn't make it disappear and he figured that, just this once, he owed these kids enough to tell them the truth. It was just _why was it so hard?_

So, he might as well just come out and say it.

"I like that stupid mayora. Just a _little!_ So, you were right," He rubbed his hands through his curls, something he was prone to do when agitated.

There. He finally admitted it.

He expected them to lord it over him, especially Kagura. Though, his eyes narrowed when the two exchanged glances before staring back at him with twin apologetic faces. _Now what_? What was with all this stupid secretive looks that Gin-san wasn't privy to?

"Look, Gin-san," Shinpachi started almost sheepishly. "We weren't actually serious when we teased you about liking Hijikata-san. At least not in the beginning. It's just so frustrating that when you and him get into fights, we have to pick up after you guys. So, Kagura-chan and I figured that if we purposely misunderstand why you fight him, that you'd stop altogether." He calmly explained with an uneasy laugh as he stared imploringly at Kagura.

_What?_

"But!" Kagura interjected with a small smile. "We also figured out that Gin-chan _actually_ likes Toshi. Sure, it was surprising at first but then it wasn't since when you guys stop fighting, you almost seem like good friends, yes? So, it turned out well, yes?" Her smile widened into a grin.

He wanted to get mad. He really did. After all the overthinking it caused him.

But, once again, they were right. So, he couldn't.

"So, what are you gonna do about it, Gin-san?" Shinpachi finally asked the real question.

**oOo**

_The spirit of giving is in the air!_ Ketsuno Ana, bless her soul, announced that morning. _Libras should invest their money in giving their loved ones things that would make them happy. Lucky color is blue and remember to avoid blondes who likes to slack off!_

A lot had happened in the time since Gintoki confessed to liking the mayora to the kids. Before he realized it, more than a few months had already passed since then. Sure, he still encountered the man a lot of times what with all the things the Yorozuya got involved in and him being part of the police. From a bastard trying to steal his life, to fulfilling the last wish of a dying oiran, or alien ships that crashed in their neighborhood.

In fact, the latest issue was just two days ago when they finally got their original forms back after the Dekoboko had changed their genders. He'd had a good laugh in making fun of the then chubby woman vice-commander and still had a good time when they'd been up to their usual shenanigans.

Kagura and Shinpachi hadn't said anything but he'd received looks from Kondo and Kyuubei when Gintoki had insisted on riling up the depressing sight of Tenko. It was even hard to admit that even as a she-pig, he actually enjoyed bantering with her because it was still Hijikata. Long before he'd allowed himself to appreciate Hijikata's physical features, Gintoki had already come to peace with the fact that he'd grown fond of the man as a person. So, whatever form he took didn't matter.

 _Ugh_ , even just admitting that to himself sounded just as cheesy just thinking about it.

In the past few weeks, he always found time to crash his way in whenever he caught Hijikata on one of his breaks from patrol, sometimes Kagura and Shinpachi with him. Sometimes, he caught the man with Yamazaki, sometimes with Kondo and Okita, sometimes with a random subordinate and on most occasions, by himself.

Like now, they sat across one another for lunch. It had become a _thing_ and, wonder of wonders, Hijikata didn't fight it.

"I'm telling you, I know what I saw," Gintoki waved his spoon around for emphasis. "I might have been tipsy but there really was an ugly version of me traipsing around with a woman being chased by a gorilla! I thought it was that commander of yours but this one looked way closer to a gorilla. A little asking around brought me to this sake stall Hasegawa and I sometimes go too." He paused to take a spoonful of his parfait.

"Version of _you_? You're so full of yourself. Are you sure you just didn't have too much to drink?" His companion asked as he took a bite of his mayonnaise-filled fried rice.

"Oi! Are you caling Gin-san a liar?" He narrowed his eyes at the scoff he received. "Apparently, they're regulars of that store. And the old man there calls that lookalike 'danna' as well. Besides, maybe you've heard of it. The place is called Yatai Guchiri-ya or something like that–"

He was cut off by Hijikata coughing out his lungs as he beat a fist to his chest, obviously having swallowed down the wrong pipe, and confirming that he _did_ know that store.

Wordlessly, Gintoki handed him a glass of water which was promptly downed by the choking man.

Once Hijikata finally got his bearings back, he glared at Gintoki through bleary eyes.

"Oh, so you've been there," He smiled mischievously at the warning that flashed in that gaze. "What? Came to complain a lot there, have you? Don't worry. Apparently, you're not the only mayo-samurai that comes there. Shocking, I know but there's actually another person who's obsessed with mayonnaise too." He shook his head at this as he remembered the conversation he'd had with the old man.

Sometimes, he forgot that Edo housed a lot of weird characters. Apparently, even people who looked like defective copies of them.

"What's wrong with mayonnaise?" Of course, the bastard was going to deflect and that was the thing he focused on.

"I could give you a whole list of reasons," Gintoki answered seriously, trying not to grin. "But if you want one, let's talk about a recent one. Did you not learn anything from your time as Tenko-chan?" He shook his head in mock disappointment.

"Yeah, I learned that even as a woman, you're a total bitch," Hijikata answered dryly despite the dangerous twitch in his brow that signaled his looming temper.

"Who're you calling a bitch, huh?" The silver-haired man scowled, curling his upper lip in derision. "Did you forget how much cuter Ginko-chan is? Who'd wanna get it going with a boar? All that mayonnaise finally showed your true self, _huh_?"

"What hell is up with that 'huh'? You're mocking me, aren't you?" The vice-commander gritted his teeth, hands clenching the edge of the table, something the man did to delay himself from simply unsheathing his sword.

"So what? You gonna arrest me, tax-thief?" Gintoki raised an eyebrow in challenge.

"What if I do? You've already got a special place in one of our prisons with your name on it," Hijikata quipped back, unwilling to back down.

For a moment, it was a stalemate. Glaring at each other. But then, the first to break, as always, was Hijikata. The bastard's lips started twitching and Gintoki just raised his other eyebrow and before he knew it, the other man was already grinning while Gintoki eventually broke out into chuckles. This was one thing that had changed between them. And he couldn't say that he disliked it, not one bit.

"So, you up for some sake on Tuesday?" He asked nonchalantly, going back to his parfait.

"Can't," The other shook his head. "We have something coming up. A lot of work is going to swamp us for the whole week," He explained straightforwardly as he also went back to his meal.

"Oh, I guess that's–"

"Here you are, Hijikata-san," A voice cut in and both of them turned to see Okita Sougo approaching their table.

Gintoki made the mistake of meeting the blonde's eyes which were trained on him. He wasn't one to back down though so he held his bored expression in place. Still, he felt sweat gather at his brow when the other's lips stretched into slow mocking smile. All teeth and future victims in sight. If he'd learned anything from observing this teen's interaction with Hijikata, it was a smile that promised pain in his future.

 _He knows!_ His brain screeched in alarm.

"Ah, danna, you're here again," Okita observed with a subtle hint of glee. "Sorry to cut your date short but Kondo-san called all members for a meeting," He explained plainly.

"It's not like that, you little shit, but fine," Hijikata sighed as he proceeded to polish off the last two spoonfuls of mayo-rice before finishing up with a gulp of water. "See you around then, Yorozuya," The man left some bills on the table as he stood up before waving as he followed after his subordinate.

Gintoki felt his hand freeze in the middle of returning that wave when Okita grinned at him again over his shoulder before both officers disappeared through the doors. Oh, right. He forgot that another change that had been occurring for the past few weeks was that that asshole kept intruding on his time together with Hijikata. If he was lucky and had Kagura with him, she'd be sufficient enough to distract the Shinsengumi Captain.

That damn sadistic shit.

"I was the one supposed to pay for today, you bastard,"

**oOo**

His horoscope for the day said that it was neither a good day nor a bad day. It would depend on his decisions.

What an ominous reading. Seriously, if it wasn't Ketsuno Ana reporting it, he'd have called the news company already and cursed that segment of the news. Were other people even bothering to listen to their horoscopes of the day? Or was it just him?

Even then, he should've known that if Kagura and Shinpachi found him obvious, it wasn't long before his other friends caught wind of his interest sooner. After all, he'd caught this particular idiot's attention from how he'd worked and interacted with Hijikata when they'd switched bodies. While the incident seemed like a godsend in the beginning considering whose body he'd been occupying, it didn't take long for Gintoki to feel restless not being under his own skin.

There was just something about being in your own body and knowing how everything was supposed to work.

The same could be said about Hijikata as the man had been easier to rile up and more agitated by the whole ordeal.

"I tried to get him to leave," were Kagura's words to him that morning as soon as he trudged out of his room in his sleepwear.

The sight didn't even sink in until he'd blinked five more times to further rouse himself. When he resorted to rubbing his eyes and the situation before him didn't change, he groaned loudly to himself before plopping down on the sofa across his uninvited guests. It was too early for this shit. He's _so_ not in the mood. After all the mess from that soul switching business, it had taken over three days before everyone was back to normal. _Ugh_ , even now the smell of shit still clung to his nostrils.

"Oi, Zura, what the hell do you think you're doing?" Gintoki found himself scowling.

"It's not Zura, it's Zurako!" Katsura Kotarou exclaimed loudly, absolutely shameless about being dressed in a fancy kimono and even armed with makeup, long hair tied to a bun.

Even Elizabeth, while saying nothing, had a bow attached at the side of his(her?) head. Did he say it was too early for this? Yes, yes, he did. Hell, it'd taken some time to kick out Sarutobi and that had been after Hijikata had complained about his stalker after his stay in Gintoki's body. Of course, he should've known that while he'd been able to kick out one idiot, another would simply take its place. Did he mention that he was not in the mood for Zura's bullshit? Because _it bore repeating_.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" He asked again, just to make the question stick.

Because if his eyes were not deceiving him, that was Zura munching on a manjū. _His_ manjū. It had been given by an old woman yesterday when he and the kids had helped her in setting up shop. He hadn't immediately eaten them because he'd been reserving the sweets for today.

"You didn't tell me that you were close to the Shinsengumi Vice-Commander," The idiot went straight to the point but Gintoki had other priorities.

"That's my manjū." Just in case his once-comrade didn't get the memo.

 _It was delicious,_ Elizabeth raised his(her?) signboard.

"Really, Gintoki, I expected more from you," Zura shook his head with a sigh of disappointment, obviously not getting his memo because _he picked up another manjū from the container and ate **his** food again._

"That's my manjū." He said blankly as the she-man just continued to eat. His. Food.

His eyelid started twitching.

"Kagura, why don't you go outside with Sadaharu for a while, hm?" He directed towards the Yato who'd been eyeing their confrontation warily ever since the word Shinsengumi had made it past Zura's mouth. Zura must've said something while he was still asleep. Just to get her to go, he stood up and went back to his room to grab a thousand-yen bill. "Here, get yourself some snack and buy some toothpaste and shampoo while you're at it–"

He didn't even get to finish before she'd snatched the money and zoomed out of the apartment with the giant white dog at her heels.

"Thanks Gin-chan!"

"Oi, don't forget what you're supposed to buy!" He yelled after her, hoping that she at least remembered the shampoo. The soap was bad for his curls, damn it.

For a while, it was quiet again before he slumped down on the couch once again. This time, he shifted forward and snatched the container out of Zura's reach. Ugh, the idiot had eaten more than half of it. His eyelid would never recover from how much it was spasming at the sight. Dejectedly, he picked up one piece and ate as he glared at the culprits.

"Gintoki, how long has this been going on?" Zura went for a question this time.

 _This idiot has been spying on you for two days now,_ came Elizabeth's rather unhelpful input and explained why he felt edgy then.

He didn't need another stalker, thank you very much.

Of course, he had the unfortunate circumstance of having this idiot knowing him so well. But, goddamn it, was he that obvious? If he was, _then why the hell wasn't Hijikata getting it?_ He'd told Shinpachi that he'd try to ease the man into the idea of Gintoki actually liking him because, knowing that bastard, he'd get spooked by the idea if Gintoki just went out with it and make it seem like it came out of nowhere.

At least, that was what he told the teen. But knowing Hijikata's history in romance, liking someone like him came with complications. It was the sole reason why he hadn't done things straightforwardly. Sometimes, he didn't even know if he'd wanted the man to notice.

It was making his head hurt.

"It's none of your business, Zura," He gritted out as he stuffed another manjū into his mouth.

"It's not Zura, it's Ka– _Zurako!_ " was the automatic response before the man cleared his throat and stared at the silver-haired man gravely. "It's my business when I see my friend trying to get cozy with someone from the Shinsengumi. Although I understand that Hijikata-dono is a good man, he's still a bakufu dog." He sniffed rather haughtily as he snapped open a fan and waved it over his face.

"I'm serious, you idiot. Stay out of it," He warned the other, starting to get fed up with his antics.

"So, you say," Zura narrowed his eyes. "Gintoki, you need to be careful. There's a lot of unrest ever since the death of Sada Sada. Even among the Joui, conflicts are brewing as the tension between the Tokugawa and Hitotsubashi factions worsens ever so slightly. I'm afraid that with all that's going on, Shinsengumi will be in the crossfire. And that's not to mention the obvious involvement of a former comrade," _Takasugi is plotting something_ remained unsaid.

Gintoki paused to ponder his guest. It seemed like Zura got tired of beating around the bush.

"Zura, you know me," He found himself smiling. "Tell me something I don't already know. Will that be enough to stop me?"

"I supposed it isn't," The man had the decency to concede to that, at the very least. "You've always lived by your own rules, after all. I just think that this isn't something you should pursue so carelessly. Is that person really worth it?" He tilted his head and seemed to watch every inch of Gintoki's expression down to the twitch of his facial muscles, which was kind of unnerving especially given the intensity of Zura's eyes.

Gintoki didn't even have to think twice about the answer. Which wasn't surprising anymore.

"He is,"

**oOo**

"Anou," Gintoki couldn't help but twitch as those demonic eyes snapped to him.

"There you are, Gin-san," Before his very eyes, the evil entity transformed until all he was staring at was the deceptively angelic visage of Shimura Tae. "Just in time. We're currently swamped at the moment so why don't you go dispose of this trash for me, hn?" She then proceeded to kick the unconscious gorilla stalker by her feet.

He'd just been passing by when he had to stop because he'd been almost hit when someone suddenly came hurtling out of nowhere. Following it was the stomping form of one she-gorilla about to pound her victim into oblivion. In all honesty, he wanted nothing to do with this situation. At all. Not if he wanted to keep his balls intact. Though, once he'd been noticed, he was smart enough to admit that there was no getting out of it.

"S-Sure," He sweated nervously. "I'll carry him back to the zoo. No worries, sure," He laughed uneasily at the attention.

"I ought to break his legs to keep him away for a week or two but we're really busy at the moment," Otae continued smiling beatifically. "So, I'll leave it to you then, Gin-san," She gave him a small nod before trudging back towards Snack Smile.

_Gin-san's not a zookeeper, damn it!_

"Oh, and Gin-san?" Gintoki flinched at suddenly being addressed again. Did she hear what he was thinking? "Give my regards to Hijikata-san as well, will you?" She winked over her shoulder before humming merrily and finally disappearing inside the building.

He didn't know what to feel at the knowledge that Otae knew about Hijikata. After all, she had been the one to catch them at the café back then. Granted, that had been a time when he still wasn't aware that he'd had some latent feelings for the bastard. He was just thankful that she'd left him alone to deal with it. It was already bad enough that the kids always tried their hand in matchmaking when the other was around.

Sighing, he crouched down by the still unconscious Kondo Isao's side. Thankfully, the man still got his clothes on. Alcohol wouldn't be enough to erase the memory of lugging around a naked gorilla after all.

"I'm so going to charge you for this," He grumbled as he grabbed an arm and slung it over his shoulder.

With that, he made the slow trail towards the Shinsengumi headquarters. Annoyingly enough, the gorilla was a deadweight on his shoulder and he'd stumbled a couple of times due to said burden. He was almost tempted to stop and check on him just in case he was actually carting a corpse around. He didn't want to be charged for murder. The little snores emanating from the larger man was enough to assuage that worry. The man was just knocked out for good.

He almost stumbled again so he had to readjust his grip.

"What did I do to deserve this?" He complained irritably, heaving out another sigh.

When his destination finally came to sight, his heart skipped a beat when he caught a glimpse of someone exiting through the large gates. He decided that what he felt was relief due to the fact that he didn't have to carry the gorilla inside the headquarters as well. If anything, he tried not to act overeager as he trudged towards the familiar figure of the Shinsengumi Vice-Commander.

"Oogushi-kun!" He called out.

"Who are you calling–" The customary response was cut off as blue eyes finally registered the unconscious form of his superior. "Kondo-san! What the hell happened to him?" He questioned in worry as he tried to shoulder the man's weight.

"Nothing serious, I think," Gintoki answered and let go once he was certain that Hijikata had it covered. "Otae ordered me to bring him back. She says hi, by the way." He shrugged casually as he rolled his shoulders.

Hijikata sighed. Like what he'd been doing earlier.

"Seriously, he never learns," He shook his head in exasperation. "One of these days, I don't know if I'll be arresting that woman for murder charges." He huffed.

"Then your gorilla will be exposed as the stalker he was," Gintoki pointed out wryly which the other didn't refute. "Also, you owe me for doing a good deed for your commander. Some parfait will be enough payment for Gin-san's kindness,"

When the vice-commander rolled his eyes, Gintoki would like to think that it was almost fond.

"And here I was about to thank you," Hijikata sarcastically remarked as he hefted Kondo's body properly. "Fine, I'll buy you a parfait at lunch tomorrow. _Just one_ , you hear me, asshole? I can't have our commander being indebted to a bum like you after all," He sounded amused and that was enough to lift Gintoki's mood.

"That's money from our taxes, bastard," He quipped back with a smirk.

"As if you ever paid taxes in your life, you natural perm," The man scowled before it melted away as he turned around to carry Kondo back into their place.

With that, Gintoki turned around as well to go back the way he came from. He'd been from the pachinko parlor when he'd almost been brained by a missile that was Kondo. Still, he supposed that it hadn't been all that bad considering. Just before he'd taken three steps though, Hijikata called out to him once again. Spinning to face the man, he raised a questioning eyebrow. Hijikata was staring at him, eyes clear and bright.

"Yorozuya, I–-" The man paused, as if he didn't know what to say and Gintoki couldn't help waiting with baited breath. However, he was disappointed when the other settled for shaking his head decisively. "Nevermind," With that, he walked away once again.

Still, for some reason, his heart wouldn't calm down.

_What the hell was that?_

**oOo**

"So, I hear you've been mooning over a certain police officer," was Otose's greeting to him one afternoon.

"W-What?" Gintoki spluttered because, even though he wasn't keeping it a secret, people _kept finding out_ for some reason. At this rate, Hijikata would be the last to know. If he ever decided to get a clue, that was.

The old woman just gave him an unimpressed stare. Like it was Gintoki who should get a clue. Un-fucking-believable.

"The kids end up eating lunches here most of the time," She told him as she blew out smoke from her kiseru. "I thought that you were neglecting them so I had Tama investigate. Got to know a lot more than I bargained for. Apparently, those kids wanted to give you some privacy while you hang around that vice-commander." Her voice definitely sounded amused, even more so when Gintoki just groaned at her words.

He wanted to sink into the ground and never come out again.

"How long has this been going on?" Otose asked him.

"Now, you just sound like Zura," He grumbled as he placed his crossed arms over the bar counter. "And I don't know how long exactly since I'm an idiot. But it's been months when I finally realized it," He casually admitted since there was no use mincing his words to this granny.

"And what did he say?" She raised an eyebrow.

At that, he exhaled sharply because this was the part that he never got to talk about with anyone.

"Nothing," He grimaced at his admission. "'Wasn't like I confessed or anything. To be honest, I don't know if I want to. I'm fine with the way things are right now between us."

Her brow furrowed at this.

"Are you really?" The woman merely returned with a question. "If you are, then for how long?" She followed with another and that was exactly what Gintoki hadn't wanted to answer because he didn't want to know the answer either.

So, he settled for not answering and avoided her gaze.

A sigh.

"Gintoki," Otose called him. " _Gintoki_ , look at me," She called again and didn't speak until he grudgingly turned back to face her. That softness in her eyes pissed him off. "If you really hadn't planned on telling him then you wouldn't go out of your way to get close to him. At some point, you're gonna want an answer. But that's beside the point. There's something else going on that's making you hesitate," She spoke with the voice of experience.

He hated it. That was Shouyo's voice when he gave lectures. His arguments were no match for it.

"Fine, fine," He breathed out sharply in defeat, shoulders slumping. "You see, he had this woman he loved. Didn't take the chance with her and went to Edo. Long story short, she's dead now and I know that he's still in love with her. I don't want to make this harder for the both of us, okay?" He combed his hands through his silver curls in anxiety, finally having voiced out his worry about this whole thing.

Gintoki hadn't known Okita Mitsuba for long. But he knew Okita Sougo. He knew Hijikata Toshirou. He'd seen how her death had affected the both of them. He'd seen how Hijikata had almost sacrificed his life for the sake of her brother, had cried for her in her last moments. Gintoki had been there.

And he honestly hadn't wanted to get in the way of that.

"You know, loving another person doesn't mean you stop loving someone," Otose eventually spoke, her gaze faraway. "She'd probably stay with him for as long as he lives but it doesn't mean he's incapable of loving someone again. After all, just because you found another person to cherish doesn't make the others any less important, isn't that right, Gintoki?" Her words reminded him of that gravestone where they'd met all those years ago.

"And moving on doesn't mean we'll forget," He continued quietly, eyes wide as he remembered Shouyo, then Zura, Takasugi and even Sakamoto. Then his thoughts shifted to this old lady, to the kids, to the stupid mayora, and everyone he'd met here at Edo.

At that, Otose smiled at him warmly.

**oOo**

"Ah, Kintoki, before I forget," Sakamoto's muffled voice called out to him.

He let out a tiny exhale of exasperation before turning to face the man. Their faces were similarly wrapped with bandages. But that was what they got for being thrown around like a ragdoll by said man's Yato subordinate. For the record, he still wanted to bash that idiot's face in for not realizing that sooner. If he hadn't seen Mutsu stopping an escape pod with her bare hand, Gintoki would have a hard time believing it either despite the evidences staring at him in the face.

Besides, he'd already had enough for the night in dealing with space pirates

"What is it?" He grumbled impatiently through the bandages.

"Just wanted to wish you luck, of course, hahaha!" The man laughed obnoxiously. "Zura told me about your man," He explained and judging by the stretching of those bandages, he was grinning as well.

_Why the hell does it keep spreading?!_

"Okay, thanks," Gintoki settled, eyelid twitching and wanting to get it over with before he strangled the idiot before him. No, he'd reserved that for Zura.

"That's good to hear, ya know?" Sakamoto tilted his head at him. "You've finally found someone you wanted to be with. Even back in our youth, you've been always impulsive, Kintoki. So, to hear Zura say that you're being careful must mean this one means a lot, eh?" He chuckled quietly at this.

Gintoki stared at him with wide eyes. Before promptly running forward to give the brunet a good kick to the head.

"Just what are you two idiots doing gossiping about me, huh?!"

**oOo**

_Libras should remember, the more the merrier,_ Ketsuno Ana had cheerfully delivered that morning. _As the lucky sign of the day, you should refrain from any acts of violence and celebrate to your heart's content! Lucky number is–_

Maybe it was a disease. Because for the past few weeks ever since Zura had invaded his home that morning, his eyelid kept spasming. Right now, he'd just wanted to relax with a cup of sake and he did. Ketsuno Ana had told him to celebrate, after all. Still, there was nothing in his plans that told him about sharing said drink with said wig who was dressed in his drags again. This time with no Elizabeth present.

"–taught them another step and we'd be good to go to join the competition," Zura was telling him, voice pitch just high enough to be androgynous since they were in public. "Maybe Leader would be interested to join. I haven't asked yet. Maybe Shinpachi-kun could recommend a few songs as well? I hear that he's a fan of music. What do you think, Gintoki?" He rambled on as he stared at him from long lashes that were accented by a mascara.

"That glasses only listens to Otsuu's songs," He grudgingly answered and reminded himself that it wouldn't look good if he were to strangle a 'woman' in front of people.

"I see," His once-friend (because he's disowning this idiot) sounded disappointed, as he should be. "Although I've heard of her songs, I can't say that I'm a fan of them. Also, it's a hiphop dance competition so I don't think her songs would qualify for it," He managed to appear more aggrieved by this.

Gintoki downed his drink before slamming his cup on the table.

"No, what the hell are you doing joining a competition like that?!" He screamed as he grabbed Zura by his kimono and tried to shake some sense into him. "Do you really have so much free time in your hands? What are you even up to? Huh?!" He was beyond overwhelmed with the idiocy at this point.

"Ah, Gintoki!" Zura gasped dramatically. "Your right eye is twitching again. Have you gotten that checked out already? That could be something serious–"

He might as well be winking at this point.

Before he could finally give in to the urge to smack Zura senseless, a voice cut in through their conversation. Someone that he didn't want to come face to face with. At least, not with this drag version of Zura with him. Though, it was enough to shut the other up for tonight, at least. Turning around slowly as if he could delay the inevitable, Gintoki's eyelid continued its spastic seizure once he caught sight of Hijikata Toshirou settling down to occupy the seat beside him.

"Ojii-san, two bottles of your strongest sake," Hijikata requested coolly.

"H-Hey, Hijikata-kun," His voice came out meeker than he expected.

Blue eyes shifted slowly towards him.

"Yorozuya," The dark-haired man nodded before pausing. "And company," He added almost as an afterthought before facing forward to receive two bottles and a cup, already opening one of the bottles to pour himself a drink.

"I thought tomorrow was your day off?" He tried to ask as casually as he could, ignoring how Zura kept shifting on his other side.

"Just got off from work," Hijikata answered before downing his sake in one go. "Just wanted a drink, that's all. What about you? And company?" He kept adding Zura's presence as some afterthought and Gintoki wondered nervously if the man suspected that it was just Zura in drags.

"Same, I guess," He laughed a little uncertainly.

For a while, there was awkward silence. In those minutes, Gintoki watched as Hijikata downed cup after cup of alcohol almost without pause. For the record, this was the first time that he'd seen the man in a desperate need to get wasted immediately. Normally, he was the brooding type who nursed his drink. This was when the uneasiness started to creep in the longer he watched. Before he knew it, Hijikata was opening the second bottle.

His hand shot out before he could stop himself.

"Whoa, slow down there, Hijikata-kun," Gintoki found himself cautioning quietly as his hand tightened around the man's wrist. "What's gotten into you?"

"Leave me alone," The other snatched his hand back roughly. "Just for tonight," He added in a mumble as he opened the bottle.

Gintoki felt a tug on his sleeve.

"I should get going," Zura whispered to him as his eyes flitted between him and the obviously off-balanced Shinsengumi Vice-Commander, visibly unsure what to do at what was happening before him.

Not that he could fault him seeing as he had no idea either.

Almost like a ghost, Zura vanished from beside him. If it weren't for the lingering scent of burnt sage, he'd almost believed that he'd imagined his friend's presence earlier.

So, that left him with a mayonnaise-addict who was apparently overly eager to die of alcohol poisoning. Grabbing the bottle from Hijikata, Gintoki wordlessly poured himself a drink. Knocking it back, he felt his throat burn as warmth instantly flooded his insides. Whoa, _whoa_. That was some strong alcohol. Considering that he always ordered the cheapest ones in the bars he frequented in, this was a feeling that he'd almost forgotten back when Sakamoto used to bring these kinds of drinks back in the war.

"Ojii-san, another one of this!" Hijikata yelled as he lifted up an empty bottle, neck and cheeks flushed.

"Uhm, hey, Hijikata-kun," Gintoki tried calling the other's attention once again. "I was serious earlier, you know. You should slow down," He didn't try to play nice this time and kept his tone firm.

"I was serious too, you know," He threw his words back at him ferociously. "Leave. Me. Alone." He punctuated this with by poking a finger on his shoulder.

"Your request has been noted and subsequently ignored, asshole," The silver-haired samurai snarked as he snatched the new bottle before Hijikata could take it. "What the hell is really wrong with you? This isn't like you," He took the bottle hostage, bringing it out of the man's reach.

"Yorozuya, you bastard, give that back!" Hijikata snarled.

"Nuh-uh, not until you tell Gin-san first what's bothering you," He stood his ground and returned the bastard's glower. Really, this man should know him by now to know that that kind of intimidation never worked on him. Geez.

For a moment, the other looked like he was simply considering punching his face. _Just try it, asshole._ Just because he liked the guy didn't mean he'd be a pushover.

The vice-commander then rubbed a tired hand over his exhausted flushed face.

"Hey," A blue eye glared from between pale fingers. "You know about my brother, right?"

"Yes?" Gintoki answered hesitantly, suspicious at the sudden direction of the conversation.

"Tell me about yourself, then we're even." The bastard demanded rather bossily.

If there wasn't any alcohol and if he hadn't felt some guilt in accidentally uncovering such memories without permission, Gintoki would deny his claim without any thought. However, as it is, he proceeded to open the bottle in his hand and poured himself a cup.

"Sure, fine, whatever works," He shrugged.

**oOo**

Gintoki hadn't meant to talk that much.

He'd told him about the corpses. About Shouyo. About Shoka Sonjuku. Before he knew it, he was telling the bastard about that time he and the others played some twisted game of 'kick the can' in the middle of war in order to lure their enemy in. How later on during a reunion, they'd thought that they had killed a comrade back then. And the thing was, inebriated as Hijikata was, the man stared at him with bright eyes and listened.

Maybe it was the alcohol. Maybe it was the guilt. Maybe it was the need to be heard. Or maybe because it was Hijikata. Or a little bit of all of the above.

By the time he was finished, there was a strange burning sensation in his eyes that he hadn't felt in a long time.

Since he was the more mobile between the two of them, it had fallen to Gintoki to shoulder the other to bring him back at least to the gates of their headquarters. Like hell he'd let the bastard fall asleep in one of the random alleys here in Kabukichou, as much fun as that was. No way. Not with the Shinsengumi Vice-Commander painting a large target on his back. It was during these vulnerable moments when those elements seemed to come out.

"You know," Hijikata, for someone who's obviously more than a little tipsy, was surprisingly still articulate. "I think I… owe you something." He eventually settled for saying.

"Oi, Gin-san didn't tell you those things just so you can owe him one," He was quick to correct because they couldn't afford to go there. Ugh, why was this bastard always so intent on making things more complicated than they needed to be?

"No, you don't understand, perm head," The man replied with an irritated wave of his hand, looking absurdly determined to get his point across. "I've always known. Not from the start but I've suspected for a while."

"You lost me," Gintoki admitted rather pitifully.

The vice-commander groaned and his face seemed to further glow bright red in response.

"These last few months, you've been nicer to me," Hijikata started out quietly and Gintoki paused for a minute before continuing their sluggish pace. "At first, I was waiting for the other shoe to drop. Because you've always hated me. Then I was confused when I realized that you weren't faking it." He sounded almost lost as he said this, both of their eyes facing front.

"I never hated you," Gintoki whispered, having no idea that that was what the man felt from him before.

"I know," This time, Hijikata actually sounded sorry about it. "At least, I now know. The thing was, I've suspected that you might have, ah, more than platonic feelings for me. I wouldn't have believed it myself if Sougo hadn't pointed it out to me as well. I just… didn't say anything, that's all." He explained and as more words got out, the quieter his voice became. If Gintoki didn't have his ear beside the other's head, he might not have heard him at all.

There was an ache somewhere in chest. Despite that, he found himself smiling.

"Why didn't you then?" He huffed out, trying not to sound too offended. "Say anything, I mean," He tried to ignore the loud beat of his heart, wondered if Hijikata could hear it.

"I still love Mitsuba," was the blunt reply and even though Gintoki already knew this, it didn't stop the dread from sinking into his skin. "I never stopped. But you. _You_. You just had to be so goddamn persistent that I couldn't ignore you. Before I knew it, I always looked forward to spending time with you, to hearing your outlandish stories or complaints, to watching you devour your parfait, to exchange insults with you, to, to, to—" He let out a shaky sigh.

_What does this mean? Why are you saying this?_

"But?" Because this was where it was obviously leading to.

Hijikata chuckled beside him.

"I wanted to, you know. Accept it. I really do. But I didn't know _how_. All I was good at was keeping the ones I love away." For such a sad admission, the man sounded anything but. "And sometimes, I feel guilty for trying to take this. It was something I never gave her and I just wanted to stop feeling so bad about it." This time, Hijikata's breath was measured, the same way one would do when trying to overcome an emotional moment.

Before Gintoki was fully aware of what he was doing, his arm around Hijikata's waist had tightened as he pulled the man closer. _Closer_ –

He didn't know who leaned in first or if they met each other halfway but their lips met in a clumsy heated kiss. It was chapped lips and hot tongues, the stench of sake on their breaths, the chill of the night on their skins, and Hijikata's hand fisted on his yukata, the arm around his shoulder curling around his neck to pull him in deeper and his other hand buried in those raven locks. For a moment, Gintoki's world narrowed down to the warmth and taste of Hijikata's mouth and nothing else.

When they eventually pulled back, they were breathing heavily.

Gintoki leaned his forehead against Hijikata's. Before, he'd honestly been content with the way things were. Then this bastard just had to open his mouth. Some part of him was already reeling at what he'd done. Because, goddamn it all, _he'd loved it_.

It had been so much easier when he never knew.

**oOo**

The next day, on the bastard's day-off, Hijikata was a no-show.

 _Taurus should learn to wait._ He'd listened that very early morning, something he'd thought of doing for a change since he was tired of listening to his own. _Watch out for sadistic assholes always out to ruin your day because they–_

Really, Gintoki knew that he shouldn't have expected any less. Not with the way things happened last night. After that kiss, they hadn't talked about the thing between them. They went their separate ways once they reached the wooden gates of the Shinsengumi. Strangely enough, he'd been fine with it. After waking up with one of the worst hangovers in the century and greeting toilet-san at six in the morning, he found that he didn't feel as shitty as he should have.

Still, after sleeping in again and waking up just something past eleven, he'd scrambled to his feet, brushed his teeth, and got dressed for the day despite Kagura's bewildered questions.

He'd waited at the usual café they usually ate lunch at. An hour had passed and Gintoki knew that the bastard wouldn't come.

Even then, he'd stayed. Because he had nothing else to do.

Just as he was about to order another parfait, someone slid into the booth across from him. To be honest, he'd jolted in surprise and anticipation, only to be extremely disappointed as Okita Sougo's face greeted him. Unlike those sadistic expressions the other usually wore when they met in this establishment, the blonde Shinsengumi Captain was staring at him rather intensely, as if he was searching for answers.

"Yo, danna," The teen eventually said.

"Slacking off again, Souichirou-kun?" Gintoki knew it was kind of childish but he couldn't help but jab either way.

Okita rolled his eyes. Not as endearing when Hijikata did it, though.

"I'll get straight to the point since you don't have much time," Okita then slid forward an envelope towards him and didn't appear to want to say anything else until Gintoki relented and moved to see what's inside. He knew the kid was serious when he didn't correct his name.

He raised an eyebrow.

"A…ticket?" He asked in confusion as he brought it out. Specifically, it was a train ticket. He didn't understand what was happening here.

"You really are hopeless, danna," The blonde deadpanned but still clearly expressing some form of exasperation because Gintoki still felt offended. "Hijikata-san is on his way to the station. He plans to go to Bushu to visit Aneue. I'm giving you this ticket so you can chaperone that bastard. Like hell I'll leave him alone with her," He crossed his arms and stared outside through the wide windows.

"Why me?" Gintoki found his heart pounding again.

"I'm on duty, of course," Okita said as if that explained everything.

"No, Okita-kun, _why?_ " He insisted.

Because Gintoki knew the dead and what it meant to be confronting them. Remembered the countless graves he and the others had dug for their comrades at the end of the war. Remembered Umibouzu sitting by that cliff in front of Hosen's grave. Remembered Sasaki Tetsunosuke as he realized that bonds between brothers didn't always need words. Remembered promising to protect an old lady in front of a dead man.

Whatever this kid was planning, he wasn't that kind of asshole by the end of the day.

Okita still didn't turn to face him. But it would answer many of his doubts, be reminded that Hijikata wasn't the only one tethered to a dead woman.

"Because that bastard needs to finally let her rest,"

**oOo**

– _might surprise you! Even if you can't trust them, at least you should, even just for today. Your lucky color for today is red. Remember to pack lightly for any outdoor trips._

**Author's Note:**

> For the record, that was Okita giving Gintoki his blessings as well at the end.
> 
> It's an open ending, surprise. This one-shot took longer than I expected and sorry for the too OOCness. I might write a sequel but I'll just leave this here for the time being. Thank you for reading!


End file.
